Between 2017 and 2018 more than 2,000 Boston residents accessed job training and education programs thanks to the Neighborhood Jobs Trust, a public charitable trust fed by linkage fees from developers of large-scale commercial projects in the City of Boston.
The $2.86 million investment, bolstered by another $2.9 million in leveraged funds, supported such services as contextualized English instruction, tuition-free college, employment coaching, paid internships, and bridge programs for post-secondary or career training.
The Neighborhood Jobs Trust Impact Report, 2017-2018 details the many ways in which NJT-funded programs targeted their services to meet demand in specific industries. The SkillWorks IT/Tech Initiative, for example, placed 140 Boston Public Schools students in paid summer internships in Boston’s high-growth tech industry. Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) Boston used its funds to prepare job-seekers for the rigors of job training in the culinary, hospitality, and information technology fields. Ninety percent of the graduates were placed in jobs, earning $16.20 an hour on average.
The recipient job training programs, which were selected through an open Request for Proposals (RFP) process, also tailored their services to populations facing unique barriers to employment—such as people with disabilities, older workers, single mothers, immigrants, returning citizens, and homeless veterans. After job placement, graduates of these RFP programs earned an average wage of $15.37 per hour with 76% earning benefits as well.
